Witchsitting
by netgirly2k
Summary: Spike-Tara friendship set towards the end of season five where Spike protects the brainsucked Tara from Glory.


The things Spike did for the slayer, first getting his arse kicked by Glory, then protecting the little bit and now agreeing to babysit Red's witchbitch girlfriend. When Buffy had turned up at his crypt with the clearly mad as a hatter Tara in toe Spike had a good mind to tell them both to bugger off, then Buffy had given him one of those looks like she and him weren't a completely lost cause and said "Willow needs some time to work on a spell, I promised her that you'd protect Tara."  
  
Spike had caved, like Buffy must have always know he would. Now Tara was settled in the corner of his crypt with a couple of Dru's old dolls to amuse her, letting Spike sit down to watch some telly. He flicked through the channels, trying to find something that grabbed his attention, but was distracted by Tara's mad babblings.  
  
"Crawling, crawling under my skin, he put them there, gotta get them out, eating me alive from the bones out." That stuff made Drusilla's old ramblings sound merely mildly eccentric. "Crawling, crawling, crawling..." Tara had wedged herself as far into the corner as possible and was using the sharp limbs of Dru's doll to scratch at her forearms. She was going to draw blood if she didn't let that up.  
  
Spike toyed with the idea of letting the girl cut herself then having a nice little snack; it wasn't like Blondie was in any condition to tell the slayer and co. what had happened. Then he thought of the look on the slayers face as she told him he was beneath her, and he thought of Willow turning him into a turnip if she ever found out he'd fed off her girl. He threw back the rest of his whisky and snatched up the bag Buffy had given him containing all the pills to keep Tara quiet and made his way over to the witch. He had never put much stock in pills, but if it got Tara to stop that caterwauling then he was willing to try anything.  
  
"Tara, c'mon witch, sit still, gotta take your medicine like a good girl," he showed her the small white pill he was holding, which seemed to set her off worse, screaming and crying and thrashing her limbs, trying to push herself through the wall of his crypt.  
  
"Don't! Can't! Don't! The beast's in them, they come for me then..." Spike grappled with the struggling girl. It didn't surprise him that she was putting up a fairly good fight, the mad were always tougher than the sane, they didn't worry about self-preservation. In Tara's frantic struggles she landed a solid kick to the vampires crotch. Spike roared, grabbing her wrists, he felt his brow change and lower, he nicked his tongue as his fangs emerged. Tara froze in his grasp.  
  
"Don't," her voice was small and pleading, she wasn't looking at his fangs but at the hand that still held the sedative. Spike shrugged, his face going back to it's usual countenance, he tossed the pill aside, in his experience there was no point in trying to force the insane to do anything they didn't have a mind to do. Still he had to keep her calm somehow or the slayer would have him staked for neglect or some such. Drusilla had been easy enough to deal with when she'd had a funny turn, she just needed to be distracted until she forgot about whatever it was she'd seen that had upset her, Maybe that would work on the witch as well.  
  
Feeling like a prize fool Spike took up the two dolls Tara had been playing with earlier and humming a waltz he guided them in a two step across his lap, Tara giggled, hiding her mouth behind her hand. Guess there are some habits even a brain suck won't cure you of.  
  
He flinched as Tara reached up to touch his cheekbone; where the shadow of a bruise was still noticeable, "She hurt you..."  
  
"Yes, pet, she did."  
  
"She hurt me too."  
  
"I know. Will, she's powerful, she'll find a way to fix you. And as for Glory," he picked up one of the dolls, the one with blonde hair and shifty eyes, the one that would have borne a striking resemblance to Glory had it been wearing a sluttier dress, "if she comes near you again I'll-" With that Spike wrenched the head off the doll.  
  
"Is that right?" Spike twisted to see Glory lounging against the crypt doorframe, casting a long shadow into the beam of light cutting across his crypt.  
  
"Hiding in the sunlight, 'fraid of another go?"  
  
"While I'd love to finish off your bony butt..." Glory cast an annoyed look at Tara, "Will you stop your stupid whimpering!"  
  
"Hey, hellbitch," Spike moved to stand between Tara and Glory, "I thought it was me you wanted to have another go at."  
  
Glory rearranged the hemline of her red mini-dress, "Blondie there had a delicious mind, but I've taken that already, she's got nothing else I want. Neither do you."  
  
"Right then," Spike took a step forward, mindful of the sunlight, "you'll just be off then I suspect."  
  
"Soon, I'm not enjoying wasting my precious time on a loser vampire and a lunatic, I just want you too give a message to your girlfriend: tell her I'm coming for her, I'm coming for her family, her friends, if I have to rip them apart one by one to find the key I will. So it really would be easier if she just gave me my key!" The hellgod stamped her foot and turned to leave, turning back and tossing over her shoulder, "and tell her to wear some better shoes next time, I so loath trading blows with the fashion impaired."  
  
"No, no, no, no, no, circling like vultures, waiting, waiting, it's so dark and I'm all alone..."  
  
"No, your not," Spike kicked the crypt door shut and knelt by Tara, "it's okay, she's gone, didn't fancy facing the Big Bad." Spike tried to ignore the inner voice that was screaming at him to go after Glory and show her how wrong she was to think him pathetic and insignificant, but he couldn't go, it was still sunny and Tara didn't look like she was safe to be left on her own, the witch was rocking back and forward, mumbling inaudibly to herself. Spike's hands hovered over her shoulders, unsure if touching her would comfort her or set her off again. The decision was made for him when Tara threw herself against his chest, dry sobs racking her body, he could feel her erratic breaths against his collarbone. Dru had gotten like this occasionally, when she realised just how far from sane she was, one good thing that could be said for Drusilla's brand of insanity was that she was happy most of the time. Tara was clearly terrified and miserable, and it must be a mark of how much the chip was affecting him that he got no joy from her misery.  
  
Spike wrapped his arms around Tara's back and pulled her down onto his lap muttering nonsense into her hair to keep her calm. After all he'd promised Buffy he'd protect her, even if it was from things that only existed in her mind.  
  
"Spike?"  
  
"Tara?" Willow and Buffy entered Spike's crypt to find Spike and Tara sitting watching passions, Tara pulling threads from the bottom of Spike's shirt with her head on Spike's shoulder.  
  
"Tara, baby?" Willow rushed to the blonde pulling her into her arms, "have you been alright?" She brushed her girlfriends lank hair away from her face.  
  
Tara looked sincerely into the redheads eyes, "sometimes wolves protect the weak members of the herd."  
  
"Well," Willow ignored Tara's words, "we'd better get you home it's time for your pills." She led Tara out into the sun.  
  
Buffy raised an eyebrow at Spike, "weak members of the herd?"  
  
Spike stood, quirking his lips, "what can I say, she likes me. I've got a way with madwomen."  
  
Buffy took a step towards him, so close that Spike could almost feel her body heat, her fists were clenched firmly by her sides and Spike wasn't sure if she was trying not to touch him or punch him. "Thanks."  
  
Spike reached out to her, to let her know he was here for her, just to touch her. She stepped out of arms reach. "I'll let you know when I need you. Thanks again for Tara, I know Willow appreciated it," she couldn't even say that she appreciated him.  
  
He shrugged, "anytime, love." 


End file.
